The Monday Roundup: what we are watching this week | November 6th

By Puja Sharma

The Monday Roundup sets the scene for the week’s biggest news stories, industry deals, and upcoming events. For Prime subscribers only.

Unlock new opportunities with BNPL

First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) has entered a strategic partnership with Mastercard to launch the SlicePay card under its Dubai First trademark in the UAE, marking the debut of the Mastercard Installments Program in the Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa (EEMEA) region.

The buy now, pay later (BNPL) solution, allows shoppers to convert their purchases into four interest-free installments securely and conveniently with a streamlined user experience.

“At Mastercard, we are committed to providing innovative and tailored payment solutions as we drive digital transformation and advance inclusion for everyone. With our vast acceptance and reach, we are uniquely positioned to enable lenders and merchants to deliver secure buy now, pay later experiences at scale, empowering them to unlock new opportunities and accelerating sustainable economic growth. We are delighted to launch our first Mastercard Installments Program to the region as we facilitate access to essential products and services for individuals and businesses,” said J.K. Khalil, Cluster General Manager, MENA East, Mastercard.

Singapore-based Funding Societies, a digital finance platform for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), has raised $7.5 million in debt funding from Norfund.

Norfund is a Development Financial Institution (DFI) which operates an investment fund owned by the Norwegian government for developing countries.This is the first debt transaction by Norfund with a fintech SME lender in Southeast Asia.

Through this debt fundraise, Funding Societies plans to channel the cash via its range of tailored financing solutions to SME segments across all five of the Southeast Asian markets it operates in. In September, Funding Societies secured $27 million in a debt funding round led by AlteriQ Global, with Aument Capital Partners and Orange Bloom also taking part.

Put money back into customers’ hands

UnionPay International (UPI) and Payments Network Malaysia Sdn Bhd, or PayNet, Malaysia’s national payments network, have collaborated and will be able to cater to all QR merchants in Malaysia for consumer payments.

This cross-border QR code linkage enables the full acceptance of the UnionPay App (Chinese-mainland, Hong Kong, and Macao versions) and Chinese-mainland bank apps connected to the UnionPay App Network Payment Platform at the QR merchants in Malaysia.

This partnership marks the first implementation of UnionPay’s cross-border QR payment interoperability model in the ASEAN region. Also, the cooperation with PayNet is of great significance for both sides since Chinese consumers visiting Malaysia can use UnionPay QR payment products they are familiar with for a better spending experience.

UK challenger bank Kroo has launched a fresh crowdfunding round in partnership with Crowdcube, with early access for current customers from 1 November and public access beginning 15 November.

With the crowdfunding round, Kroo says it aims to support its ambition “to change banking for good and put money and power back into customers’ hands”. Since securing its full UK banking licence in 2022, Kroo claims to have opened 145,000 accounts and accumulated £765 million in deposits.

“Banks are guilty of prioritising profits over customers. They make decisions that impact all our lives, but we have no say in how they are run. Kroo wants to change that,” said Andrea De Gottardo, CEO of Kroo. By inviting our growing customer base to be investors, they will have a say in how we run the bank – from our services to our products.”

What is the buzz

The National Bank of Georgia has selected US-based FinTech Ripple as its official technology partner for its digital lari pilot project.

Utilising Ripple’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) platform, Georgia’s central bank aims to explore use cases and potential benefits of having a digital currency for the public sector, businesses and retail users.

Following a “competitive” selection process, the central bank says it chose Ripple for the pilot owing to its “deep understanding of the project’s purposes and use cases, as well as a full commitment to the project’s success, sustainable business continuity, clear project development roadmap, and gradual deployment approach to use-cases”.

The central bank also mentions Ripple’s experience in conducting such pilots as one of the factors leading to its eventual selection. Just this year, Ripple partnered up with the Republic of Palau, Colombia, and Montenegro for similar pilot projects.